Technologies
Hippos spew ‘tornado poo’ when they hear the voice of a hippo stranger
It might sound gross, but this knowledge could help with hippo conservation efforts.
When you hear a stranger’s voice, hopefully you don’t react by releasing «tornado poo.» Scientists have learned that hippopotamuses, however, have a tendency to defecate intensely upon hearing an unfamiliar hippo’s call. That might sound melodramatic, but it’s actually a way hippos mark their space. They’re known to be aggressive and males sometimes in engage in battle.
A study published in the journal Current Biology on Monday delves into the secret social lives of hippos. News portal Science Media Exchange, which published the Cell Press release on the study, seems to be the one that came up with the evocative «tornado poo» description. That phrase doesn’t appear in the paper, which prefers «dung spraying.»
The research took place in the Maputo Special Reserve in Mozambique. The reserve is home to multiple groups of hippos residing in different lakes, giving researchers the chance to record calls (hippos sound a loud «wheeze honk»)from animals that lived near each other, and from ones that were total strangers.
The researchers played the calls for the animals and monitored the reactions. «We found that the vocalizations of a stranger individual induced a stronger behavioral response than those produced by individuals from either the same or a neighboring group,» said co-author Nicolas Mathevon of University of Saint-Etienne, France. Hippos responded to the recordings by vocalizing back, approaching or spraying dung, or sometimes a combination of those behaviors. The hippos were more likely to unleash dung when hearing a stranger’s call.
The study could help when hippos need to be moved as part of efforts to conserve the species. «Before relocating a group of hippos to a new location, one precaution might be to broadcast their voices from a loudspeaker to the groups already present so that they become accustomed to them and their aggression gradually decreases,» Mathevon suggests. The same could be done for the hippos being moved, essentially a get-to-know-you effort on both sides.
Hippos are listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, which catalogs the conservation status of animals and plants. The researchers hope to learn more about how hippos communicate through future studies. They’re expressive animals, whether they’re using their mouths or a very different part of their anatomy.
Technologies
McDonald’s Snack Wraps Are Back but Was It Worth the Wait?
Review: McDonald’s Chicken Snack Wraps are back and I sampled both varieties on release day. Here’s what I think.
McDonald’s Snack Wraps, a chicken-tortilla entree that’s been missing from US locations of the Golden Arches, flew back into US restaurants on July 10 — and after all this build-up, I had to try both flavor varieties right away.
McDonald’s Snack Wraps first came out in 2006 and were meant to be a chicken item that would appeal to drive-thru customers because they’re less messy to eat while traveling. Both of the two varieties include white-meat chicken strips known as McCrispy Strips wrapped in a flour tortilla with shredded cheese and lettuce. McCrispy Strips are a reworked version of a chicken item formerly known as Chicken Selects.
McDonald’s Ranch Snack Wrap is worth the wait
If there’s a basic or classic version of the two Snack Wrap varieties offered, it’s the Ranch Snack Wrap. It consists of one McCrispy chicken strip wrapped in a flour tortilla, sprinkled with shredded lettuce and shredded cheese, and lightly doused with the chain’s McCrispy Ranch Sauce.
Honestly, I was a little worried that the Ranch Snack Wrap wouldn’t live up to all the hype. Two days before the McDonald’s wraps came out, I tried out the very similar chicken snack wraps at Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, another fast-food franchise that’s jumped on the snack wrap bandwagon. And they were delicious — but then, chicken is Popeyes’ reason for being. Those wraps were so good, in fact, that I wondered if McDonald’s, not a chicken franchise by nature, could possibly compete.
Good news: The McDonald’s Ranch Snack Wrap is delicious, and just about as good as Popeyes’ version. You’ll notice right away that it’s weirdly designed. The tortilla is huge compared to the relatively small chicken piece, and if you don’t slide the chicken up your first few mouthfuls will be plain tortilla and little else.
But the chicken is fresh and juicy, the cheese and lettuce are decent add-ons and the ranch sauce brings in a creamy taste of herbs and spices that blends well with the chicken. Note that the sauce delivery was kind of hit-or-miss, so you might want to add a shot of your own ranch dressing if you want an even distribution of sauce.
But it’s McDonald’s, not a fancy Michelin-starred eatery, so who expects perfection? If I was eating at McDonald’s, I’d order the Ranch Snack Wrap over either a basic burger or a McChicken sandwich every day of the week.
Grade: A
McDonald’s Spicy Snack Wrap review: Sauce is the weak spot
The Spicy Snack Wrap also features one McCrispy chicken strip inside a flour tortilla, again sprinkled with shredded lettuce and cheese. But this time, the sauce is McDonald’s orangey Spicy Pepper Sauce. And that’s the problem.
I love spice, often adding Sriracha or hot honey to my sandwiches, but I actively disliked the McD Spicy Pepper Sauce. It was overly sweet and dominated each mouthful, so while the chicken itself was the same crispy juicy strip as in the Ranch Snack Wrap, its taste was buried. There’s no question that it comes with a kick, though — I was still feeling the heat 20 minutes after lunch.
If I ordered McDonald’s Snack Wraps again, I’d stick to the Ranch Snack Wraps and pass on the Spicy Snack Wraps. But if you want to try both, I noticed on McDonald’s app that you can order a mix-and-match meal including one Ranch Snack Wrap, one Spicy Snack Wrap, fries and a drink.
Grade: B-
Fans have Snack Wrap fever
Zach Ciampa, who regularly covers new food releases under the social-media handle Snach With Zach, said there’s been an intense fan base out there for the wraps.
«Regarding McDonald’s Snack Wrap, it’s by far the most requested item I’ve ever seen my audience ask or demand to come back,» he told CNET. «Not just the most requested in recent memory but the most requested of all time. And that’s not limited to McDonald’s.»
Read more: Review: McDonald’s Minecraft Meals Feature The Hottest Nugget Sauce Ever
Ciampa said the only similar fast-food items that come close to the same level of interest are Dairy Queen’s S’mores Blizzard and Taco Bell’s Caramel Apple Empanada, both of which have made recent returns.
McDonald’s is riding a viral wave. The fast-food chain’s Minecraft Happy Meals and adult Minecraft Meals hit restaurants on April 1 and sold out quickly.
A recent analysis by VegasInsider.com found that the Snack Wrap was by far the most searched for discontinued McDonald’s menu item of 2025.
What you need to know about Snack Wraps
Release date and time: The Snack Wraps are at participating McDonald’s now. You can order on the McDonald’s app, in restaurants, or in drive-thrus.
Price: At my local restaurant, Snack Wraps are priced at $3 apiece and a meal including fries and a drink was listed at $12. Prices may vary by location, A co-worker said Snack Wrap meals were $10.50 at his New York City McDonald’s.
Varieties: You can order a Snack Wrap in Spicy, which features a habanero-pepper kick, or Ranch, which features a burst of cool ranch sauce.
Technologies
Here’s the Mystery Flavor of McDonald’s New Pink and Blue Shake
The crazy-colorful shake is part of the McDonaldland Meal, which is like a (pricey) Happy Meal for adults. And now I know the flavor.
I tried the McDonaldland Meal at my local McD’s on Aug. 12, the day it came out. And I don’t want to say that I’ve been thinking about the mystery flavor of its pink-and-blue Mt. McDonaldland shake ever since, because that would make me sound truly bizarre, but…I have pondered it.
When I tasted the shake, I guessed it was maybe blue raspberry, maybe cotton candy, maybe mixed berry. It’s sweet but not sickeningly so, though I’d never order it again. (I’m a chocolate fan.)
But I kind of wanted to know what the mystery flavor was. And now I do: According to McDonald’s Canada’s own nutrition page for the shake, the blue beauty features a «mix of creamy vanilla soft serve and raspberry flavored syrup.» (I tried to confirm this on the US nutrition page, but it just spun and spun and never loaded. Get on that, Ronald.)
RASPBERRY! The Mt. McDonaldland shake is raspberry flavor! And it’s blue in color, so my guess of blue raspberry was correct! Raspberry is the hot fast-food flavor these days, as Starbucks just brought back its much-loved raspberry drink syrup in late July.
If you’re wondering what I’m even talking about, McDonald’s continues to capitalize on the love of its customers for the company’s goofy history. Recently, Happy Meals included McDonald’s-themed toys — such as drink machines, fryers and trays with food on them — delivered in mini-Happy Meal boxes. And the much-longed-for Snack Wraps finally returned after a viral fan campaign.
The McDonaldland Meal goes straight after that market of adults who have a nostalgic feeling for the Golden Arches. It’s not cheap — here in high-cost-of-living Seattle, the medium meal was $16.59 and the large was $18.29.
You can choose from a Quarter Pounder with cheese or a 10-piece McNugget order. It also comes with the chain’s famous french fries and your choice of drink. But the specialty drink that’s made to go with the meal is called that mystery-until-now-flavored Mt. McDonaldland shake, and it’s a blazing blue color, topped with hot pink whipped cream. It’s supposed to look like a volcano, with the pink cream as lava, I guess.
You can order the shake without the meal if you just want to try it. If you don’t want to try it, you can choose a regular drink or another flavor of shake with your McDonaldland meal.
Read more: Review: McDonald’s Minecraft Meals Feature The Hottest Nugget Sauce Ever
I sampled the hot pink whipped cream by itself, and it seemed to have no flavor, so maybe they just took regular whipped cream and dyed it pink.
Instead of a simple toy, the McDonaldland Meal comes with a 5-by-7-inch tin with one of the McDonaldland mascot characters on it. I ended up with Hamburglar, who, after Grimace, would probably have been my choice.
Tins come embossed with Hamburglar, Grimace, Ronald McDonald, Mayor McCheese, Birdie the Early Bird and the Fry Guys. Honestly, I’m not sure what anyone would do with this tin, but it was definitely a classier included item than most of the Happy Meal toys.
Inside the tin is a card with a code you can scan to explore McDonaldland online, an ID card for your particular character, two postcards and four stickers. One of my stickers said «robble robble,» the Hamburglar’s favorite saying, and one read, «Keep up! Hamburglar and I are mid-heist.» I can’t really imagine anyone putting these on their water bottle or laptop, but to each their own.
Honestly, unless McDonald’s nostalgia is your thing, I’d recommend you just stick to ordering your usual at the Golden Arches and skipping the meal. But if you just don’t get enough blue and pink food in your life — and who does? — try the Mt. McDonaldland shake once, pass it around to let your friends make them guess the flavor before you smugly deliver the big reveal, and then go back to chocolate or another good old standard flavor.
Technologies
A $101 Discount Means This PlayStation VR 2 Bundle Has Never Been Cheaper
Grab a top-rated VR headset and one of its best games for just $299 with this incredible remaining Cyber Monday bargain.
Listing at $299, the Meta Quest 3S is the most affordable way to dip your toes into the world of VR. But for high-end console gaming, the PlayStation VR 2 is the way to go. It’s a little pricier than the competition at $400, but this remaining Cyber Monday deal drops it down to a new record low.
Both Amazon and Walmart have the Horizon Call of the Mountain bundle on sale for just $299 right now. That means you’ll save $101 on the headset and also get one of the best PSVR 2 games for free. We don’t expect this deal to last for long since most sales have ended, though, so be sure to take advantage of these savings while you still can.
It’s important to note that you’ll also need a PS5 console to use the PSVR 2 headset, but thankfully they are also on sale right now. You can grab the digital-only PS5 Slim for just $400, which is $100 off the usual price.
The PSVR 2 features heightened Sense technology with eye tracking, 3D audio, haptic feedback, adaptive triggers and touch detection. Its enhanced eye tracking and haptics set it apart from the Quest headset, though the Meta system can be standalone and is more versatile.
Sony has not been amazing at supporting its PSVR 2 headset with first-party titles, but there are plenty of third-party games to play. Additionally, you can pick up an adapter to use it on a PC. All in all, it makes for a great gift this holiday season. And for $299, this is a sizable drop in price compared to when it launched.
Why this deal matters
Because you need both a PS5 console and the headset, investing in a PSVR 2 can be pretty pricey. But if you are looking to grab one, now is the time to do so. Not only is this the all-time lowest price we’ve seen on the Horizon Call of the Mountain bundle, but now you also have a rare chance to grab a PS5 console on sale.
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